more bellus swim bladder problems

[aulepe]

i recently purchased a bellus angelfish after noting it had done well in the lfs for over a month. i've had it for over 3 weeks now, and generally it had been doing well- eating well, chased a little by my pacific blue tang. however in the past week it's been swimming a little abnormally- seems to exert a lot of effort to swim downward with head pointed down, not swimming horizontally. the movements would seem compatible with swim bladder problems though it seems unusual to occur after over 6 weeks of captivity. any ideas? and if in agreement that there may be a swim bladder problem what can be done?

 

[aulepe]

bump

 

[JHemdal]

I've seen this a lot in Genicanthus angels - sometimes it is a serious problem, but once I had a Watanabei that would feed from the surface - injesting air at the same time. It would swim like that for 1/2 a day or so until it passed the air bubble through. Try not to let Genicanthus feed from the surface...

Jay

 

[aulepe]

thanks jay,

i have noticed that she will go to the surface from time to time even when i'm not feeding to nip at what she may perceive as food, so the air swallowing is certainly possible because she otherwise looks okay- feeding well, no wounds or skin lesions, etc.
so this doesn't represent a swim bladder infection or anything requiring meds at this point?

 

[JHemdal]

aulepe,

No - it *could* be an internal infection, I just wanted to relay another possible cause with these angelfish. Many of these deeper water fish are "needled" to decompress them, and this can cause secondary infections. It's just that your fish has been around for awhile, symptom-free, I'd think that would have showed up sooner.

Jay

 

[aulepe]

i'm planning to sit and watch for a while, given the female bellus otherwise looks okay.
if there were a swim bladder infection how is it treated? broad spectrum antibiotics in a QT?

 

[JHemdal]

The problem is that internal bacterial infections really need to be treated with oral or injectable antibiotics, and plankton pickers do not lend themselves well to medicated food. That pretty much leaves injectables - you'll need a veterinarian to help you get set up for that - I can give you some try-out dosages if you want....

Jay

 

[aulepe]

thanks for your help jay.
i wouldn't mind knowing the doses and routes of recommended medications in the event the bellus starts to do more poorly.
right now the risks likely outweigh the benefits, but its always good to know your options in advance

jason

 

[aulepe]

btw forgot to mention my bellus does eat a variety of foods including spectrum thera+A 1mm sinking pellets, so i wonder if she would take some medicated foods rather than having to resort to injection therapy...